by Parish Visitor Editor | Jan 10, 2021 | Newsletter
A happy and blessed new year 2021—all 365 days of it!
Advent and Christmas this year have been quite unusual for everyone, and here at Marycrest, our motherhouse, it was very unusual. COVID hit us! From the youngest to the oldest, most of the Sisters caught it, as well as most of our employees. In fact, our oldest Sister, Sr. Mary Elise, celebrated her 100th birthday while in quarantine! Everybody had ice cream in her honor, even the ones quarantined in their rooms. Three Sisters had to be hospitalized for COVID, some had it very mild (as I did), and some were in between.
The few Sisters who tested negative did much extra work, as well as decorating the Christmas tree and putting up other decorations. We were without Mass for two weeks; we didn’t want the priests to catch it. The Sisters who were up and around participated in the Mass by livestream, and the ones in quarantine were brought Holy Communion to their rooms.
Many friends brought us food, hand sanitizer, etc. One of our Bronx Sisters as well as our Pennsylvania Sisters were able to come to Marycrest to help out, and the Sisters of Life cared for night duty in our infirmary until our aides could return. (We helped the Sisters of Life in the beginning of their foundation, and now they were glad to return the favor.)
Those who had the virus ended their quarantine on Christmas morning, though a few Sisters still are a bit weak.
Our apostolate has, of course, been limited by the pandemic, but the Sisters are doing all they can by zoom, phone calls, and so on. Some religion classes are still being held in person, with masks and social distancing. Here is Sr. Alina Marie, of our Bronx convent, teaching Bible history through the Advent Jesse tree.
On January 4 our postulant became a novice. She received her habit and while veil, as well as our Constitutions and the Spiritual Directory of our foundress, and is now called Sister Debra Marie.
Recently the novitiate hosted a belated Epiphany party for all the Sisters, complete with the Three Kings and a marshmallow roast! It was great to have a fun evening together after so much sickness!
In the world, the pandemic continues. In this pandemic, people still need God. In fact, they need Him more than ever! And, God is still calling young men and women to give themselves to Him, to love and serve Him and His people.
The pandemic shouldn’t stop discernment. Discernment is not just making a decision, choosing what seems best for me, and so on; it’s trying to know what God wants for me.
This is not always easy. Many other things vie for our attention. We need prayer and silence to know what He is telling us. Before the Blessed Sacrament is the ideal place to pray, but you can pray anywhere where you can be quiet and undisturbed.
God will not fail you if you are sincerely trying to know His will. A prayer I found helpful in my own discernment was, “God give me the grace to know Your will, and the courage to do it!” These are two steps. Once we discern what God is showing us, we need courage to go ahead! And, who is the source of courage but God!
May God’s guidance and graces be with you! If you’d like to know more about the Parish Visitors, just contact me by email or phone. God bless you!
In Jesus,
Sister Dolores Marie
by Parish Visitor Editor | Nov 21, 2020 | Newsletter
God is good! All the time! And we have so much to thank Him for, not only now but always! Here are some of the many, many things we Parish Visitors are grateful for:
Jesus in the tabernacle, all the time, and being able to praise Him daily.
The opportunity to spread God’s word.
The foundation of our community 100 years ago by Servant of God Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, and God’s call to us to love and serve Him here!
The opportunity to serve our Sisters.
The beauty of God’s creation.
Keeping safe in this pandemic.
The joys of community life.
And our Catholic faith, our health, our families, food every day, our education, living in a free country, and so much more!
May you have a grateful heart always!
If you haven’t yet seen the vocation videos done to commemorate the centenary of our community’s foundation, go to the vocation section of our website. There are other videos there as well, including vocation stories of some of the Sisters.
May God continue to guide you in your discernment of His will for your future. God bless you!
In Jesus,
Sr. Dolores Marie
by Parish Visitor Editor | Oct 5, 2020 | Newsletter
Every vocation has its own story. Each Sister could tell you how she happened to enter the convent. There are some similarities but some differences. When did Sister realize that God was calling her? How did she decide on the community? Were there difficulties to overcome? How did her family react?
Our website has a number of vocation stories, and now, in this 100th anniversary year of our foundation as a community, I’d like to tell you about our foundress’ vocation journey.
Mother Mary Teresa Tallon (who was then Julia) lived on a farm in upstate New York. Julia had one brother and three sisters; several other siblings had died in infancy and her father died when she was young.
She went to the local public school, where she and her younger sister Jane were the only Catholic students. This is the schoolhouse she and Jane walked to each day.
In her childhood Julia had never met a Sister, yet “at the age of 12, I knew just what I wanted. I wanted to be a religious. I wanted to give myself to God and work for souls for Him.”
Perhaps she had heard of Sisters from her grandmother, who lived with the family? When she told her mother of her desire, she was laughed at. “It’s only a childish idea.”
She took advantage of the opportunities available to her to spread the faith to others. When families from the city came at harvest time to help with the harvest, Julia gathered the children and informally instructed them in the faith. In addition, she helped arrange for her home to be a mission station for occasional Masses for those who could not get to the parish church three miles away.
Her desire to be a Sister didn’t go away, and when she was in her teens her mother realized that her daughter was serious about this. Despite being a churchgoing Catholic, her mother did not want her daughter to enter a convent. As with many mothers, “It’s fine for someone else’s daughter, but not for my daughter.”
Her mother decided to squelch the idea. After sending Julia for a dressmaking course, she sent her off with a new wardrobe to distant relatives in the city for a winter vacation, so that Julia would be exposed to young people, parties and dances. In addition, a daughter in that family had been in the convent a short while and left, thinking convent life was too hard, and Julia’s mother thought this would be the final blow to Julia’s dream.
God had other plans, however. When Julia arrived at the home she was visiting, the local parish was hosting a parish mission. Julia spent all her free time in church instead of at social events. She spoke with the mission priest, who encouraged her in her vocation.
She later wrote, “After two weeks I returned to my home, a failure in the eyes of my family. They never thought I would amount to much. I was too shy, they said.”
Julia, however, was more determined than ever to be a Sister. Her mother then let her know she was on her own for any travel expenses or other things she would need if she entered a convent. Of course Julia had no money.
After a little time passed, she gained permission from her mother to go to another city, with her younger sister Jane, boarding there and getting a job. The two girls found employment in a dressmaking factory, saving their scant earnings so Julia could become a Sister. Fortunately her sister Jane was “on her side.”
While in the city, Julia was able to attend daily Mass, which had not been possible at home, and she met the Sisters who worked in the area and did some volunteer work with them.
She turned to the parish priest for spiritual direction, and he encouraged her vocation. She also joined the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin. This is the only photo we have of Julia before her entrance to the convent, taken when she was received into the Sodality.
After the local parish priest visited her mother and explained her duty to allow her daughter to enter religious life, her mother reluctantly gave permission.
Julia still had to decide on an order. After considering the Sisters she had volunteered with, she applied to the Holy Cross Sisters, through the encouragement of her spiritual director, and was accepted. Her family was upset and in tears at her leaving, but she did not back down. She entered just before her 20th birthday, and she was a Holy Cross Sister for many years before God gave her the call to begin the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.
We are so grateful for her YES to Him to enter religious life, and for her further YES to Him to found the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate 100 years ago!
God still calls! On October 1 we received a new postulant, Debbie Comins, from upstate New York, and on the same day postulant Sally Yu, from California, began her novitiate. Sally is now Sister Sylvia Marie. (Sylvia is her baptism name.) Here is a photo of Sister Sylvia Marie and one of her with Debbie, Sr. Mary Beata, the novice director, and Mother Maria Catherine.
May God bless you as you continue to discern His will for your life. Keep praying and trusting in Him and He will never fail you!
In Jesus,
Sister Dolores Marie
by Sr. Mary Emmadoña Lee | Aug 5, 2020 | Newsletter
Our 100th anniversary! That’s quite a milestone! When Mother Mary Teresa Tallon began our community in New York City on August 15, 1920, she began with only three members. The seed grew and spread, and besides our “community in heaven” rejoicing there with our foundress, we now have convents in New York, Pennsylvania, Arizona, the Philippines and Nigeria. Only God knows how many thousands and thousands and thousands of persons have been brought back to Him, and learned to love Him, by Parish Visitors over the years!
One of the Sisters recently made a cutout of our foundress. Our centenary celebrations originally planned for August 15 and 16 have been postponed for now because of the pandemic, but our anniversary will be very special nevertheless!
During the pandemic we have continued to reach out to people in whatever way we could, as our last few newsletters told—phone, email, May devotions, zoom, and so on. Our Pentecost novena is now on our website; you can access it there. We also had a livestreamed Holy Hour for Corpus Christi, praying for all the continents of the world. Hopefully before long everything will be more normal. First Communions, though delayed, took place recently, and more will be held in the fall. Here are a few photos.
What a privilege to instruct others in the faith, and especially to prepare children for First Communion!
Two of our junior professed Sisters, Sr. Alina Marie and Sr. Marie Meaghan, moved to our Bronx convent to begin their new apostolates.
Here they are pictured with Sr. Mylene Rosemarie at the convent.
Our annual eight-day retreat was in early July. Retreat is always a beautiful time of many graces from the Lord, as well as a preparation for the year ahead. I’ll share with you this quote from our retreat master:
We are brides of Christ.
We serve Jesus for those who do not.
We worship Him for those who do not.
We are pure for those who are not.
We are brides of Christ.
A few years ago Sr. Maria Leah was recorded singing “I Am Your Bride” for a youth conference. You can listen to it on this link:
TVM Sessions: Your Bride
Si Sr. Lea Japos ng Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate, kasama si Mr. Philippe Toda ng Youcat Phils at Kuya Roberto Bahia ng TV Maria ang mag share naman ng kanilang talento sa pagkanta. Tara! pakinggan po natin sila. 🙂
Posted by TV Maria on Wednesday, May 24, 2017
I’ll close with a quote from our foundress about her inspiration to begin our community:
“God revealed to me clearly, at Holy Mass…what it was He wanted. I must establish an Institute where women would be trained to greater spiritual perfection and, being formed in the contemplative spirit, go out in search of the lost lambs and bring them back to the fold by means of Christian instruction. I saw God’s will clearly and received strong assurances of His powerful protection.”
Please thank God along with us for Servant of God Mother Mary Teresa Tallon and for the foundation of the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate! And, if God is nudging you in this direction, be not afraid! Come!
In Jesus,
Sister Dolores Marie
by Sr. Mary Emmadoña Lee | May 18, 2020 | Newsletter
Our Blessed Mother, whom we all love so dearly, gets very special honor in May, with spring flowers, May crownings, and other devotions.
At our motherhouse we had a May crowning on Mothers’ Day. It was planned to be outdoors at our grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, but the very chilly weather (one inch of snow the day before!) moved the crowning indoors.
Our oldest Sister, Sr. Mary Elise, who will be 100 years old this year, was the crown bearer, while our youngest postulant, Sally, was the crowner. Each Sister placed a flower before Our Lady. We then completed the ceremony with hymns and our Parish Visitor consecration to Mary.
Our juniorate Sisters (those in temporary vows) had planned a marshmallow roast especially for the older Sisters for Mothers’ Day. Again, the chilly weather moved it indoors, and we roasted the marshmallows on the stove! Changes of plans are a standing joke with us!
We were also privileged this year to begin the month of Mary with the reconsecration to Mary of the United States and Canada, by the bishops of all the dioceses. It had to be done individually by each diocese because of the pandemic. What a beautiful tribute to Our Lady!.
During this pandemic our apostolate has to change temporarily, of course. Some of the Sisters have been able to keep in touch with the students in their religion classes by phone calls, email, postal mail, or sometimes zoom. First Communions and Confirmations are unfortunately delayed.
A number of the Sisters at Marycrest phoned all the parishioners of one of the large local parishes, asking the people how they were doing. These calls were very much appreciated.
At the same parish the Sisters in formation helped with bringing the statue of Our Lady to the homes of the delayed First Communion children. Keeping social distance, the children—many in their First Communion clothing—joined the priest and Sisters in a decade of the rosary and a hymn in front of their homes.
Hopefully it won’t be too long before we can safely resume parish visitations, in the footsteps of the Good Shepherd seeking those who need the Lord, and instructing children and others in the faith, in person. Meanwhile, we do all we can, and our prayers and sacrifices go where we cannot!
As our Parish Visitor Constitutions reminds us, Mary, especially in her Visitation to Elizabeth, is a model for our contemplative-missionary vocation. The Sisters are to walk in spirit with Mary, contemplating the greatness of the Lord and imitating her example of charity and zeal.
We have been having livestreamed Masses, and at one of the homilies the priest shared this:
God is more powerful than Wifi. Stay connected to Him!
The signal is always strong.
It’s always reliable, it’s always on, and it’s free!
The password is L O V E.
God bless you and guide you in your discernment of His will!
In Jesus,
Sr. Dolores Marie
by Parish Visitor Editor | Apr 16, 2020 | Newsletter
During these difficult days, may we find strength, courage, and hope in our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ.
The PVMI Formation Sisters would like to encourage you with our heartfelt prayers and support.
In solidarity, we unite our prayers to yours. Let us remain steadfast in faith and find comfort in Jesus, our Merciful Savior.
By His Cross, Jesus triumphed over the grave.
Let us place our trust in Him, Who will lead us to victory.
We are praying for you and with you!
“The priest is at the service of the community. He is also sustained by his community. He needs the specific contribution of the laity not only for the organization and administration of the community, but also for faith and charity, a certain osmosis exists between the faith of the priest and that of the other faithful. Christian families and fervent communities have often assisted their priests in times of crisis.” (“The Priest Pastor and Leader of the Parish Community,” Congregation for the Clergy, 16)
On St. Valentine’s Day, we were blessed to visit the Shrine of St. John Neumann in PA, and pray before his incorrupt body. A priest gave each of us a personal blessing with a first class relic, to remind us of God’s great love and to remain faithful until the end.
We are so grateful for our priests who bring us the Real Presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, and have a deeper appreciation for them, especially during this challenging time. In the words of St. John Paul II: “There can be no Eucharist without the priesthood, just as there can be no priesthood without the Eucharist.” Let us pray for our spiritual fathers who heroically spend themselves to bring us the bread of life.
Greetings in the Risen Lord!
Alleluia, HE conquered death! With confidence in Jesus Christ, I greet you in this joyous and triumphant season of Easter! Recently, we have been disoriented with global suffering with the COVID-19… Fear, pain, suffering, and dying. Our Sisters have been storming heaven with their heartfelt prayers for all of you.
Let us not JUST look at this misery of the world in despair, but LOOK UPON HIM who will travel with you as He did with the two on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24: 13-35) and share with you with His presence in the Scriptures and in your daily prayers as never before. May the Risen Jesus be your constant help and strength!
By Sr. Mary Beata, Postulant/Novice Director
A Message of Hope
Our Lord is our refuge, He is our strength
Staying united in prayer will take us to great lengths
It is faith that we desperately need, in this time of distress
God, in His merciful love, will surely deliver us from this mess
Though we may not understand His mysterious ways
Let us fix our eyes on Him, every moment of our days
He who is faithful, will redeem us with His love
So let us trust in Him and look to Him above
Be assured that the PVMI Sisters are praying for you
It is the only and best thing we can possibly do
Be not afraid, Jesus Christ is our triumphant light
His power will lead us to victory in this fight
By Sally Yu, Postulant
“Queen of peace, the world is most disturbed. Queen of Heaven and earth come to the aid of thy children. Make us
worthy of such a Mother. Mother of Mercy, hear us, help us. Keep us near thee, get us divine peace for Jesus’ sake.”
–Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, Servant of God,
PVMI Foundress
Sacred Heart of the Good Shepherd in front of the PVMI Motherhouse
Re-membering
Remember—I created you because I love you.
Remember—I brought you to this desert to speak tenderly to you.
Remember—I died so that you may live forever.
Remember—I am your Savior, Healer, Protector, and King.
Remember—you are not alone; I am always with you.
Remember—those you love are infinitely more dear to Me than you can imagine.
Remember—though you feel isolated, My Church is one Body, united in Me.
Remember—through your Spiritual Communion and Adoration
you are aiding in the redemption of the world.
Remember—I Am your Father, Friend, and Guide.
Remember—My Sacred Eucharistic Heart thirsts for you more than you thirst for Me.
Remember—to console Me for all of those who do not know, trust in, or love Me.
Remember—I am your Good Shepherd Who searches for you always,
waiting to hold you in My arms.
Remember—as you weep for those who have died, I weep with you.
Remember—I redeemed you so that you will spend eternity with Me.
Remember—though the world is passing through Calvary, you will see the Victory.
Remember—My desire is to love you as I re-member, re-create this broken world.
Remember—to let Me love you, to re-create you.
By Mary Beth Bracy, Postulant
A happy and blessed new year 2021—all 365 days of it!
On January 4 our postulant became a novice. She received her habit and while veil, as well as our Constitutions and the Spiritual Directory of our foundress, and is now called Sister Debra Marie.
In her childhood Julia had never met a Sister, yet “at the age of 12, I knew just what I wanted. I wanted to be a religious. I wanted to give myself to God and work for souls for Him.”
While in the city, Julia was able to attend daily Mass, which had not been possible at home, and she met the Sisters who worked in the area and did some volunteer work with them.
Our juniorate Sisters (those in temporary vows) had planned a marshmallow roast especially for the older Sisters for Mothers’ Day. Again, the chilly weather moved it indoors, and we roasted the marshmallows on the stove! Changes of plans are a standing joke with us!
A number of the Sisters at Marycrest phoned all the parishioners of one of the large local parishes, asking the people how they were doing. These calls were very much appreciated.
